Star-Lord, Drax, Rocket, Mantis, and Groot engage in some spirited shenanigans.

Everyone who knows me knows that The Guardians of the Galaxy are my favourite part of the MCU with James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 ranking as my all-time favourite MCU film. Now in a very special presentation for Disney+, all-star creative James Gunn presents fans of the MCU with a very special present in the form of The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special. And it is a riotous bit of holiday fun, delivered as only James Gunn does. Having purchased the off-world hub of Knowhere from The Collector and taken Cosmo The Spacedog into their ranks, The Guardians of the Galaxy are adjusting to a post-blip life, but their leader, Peter Quill/Star-Lord (Chris Pratt) is rather down and despondent due to the loss of Gamora. Seeking a way to cheer him up Drax (Dave Bautista) and Mantis (Pom Klementieff) decide to throw him a Christmas party with a very special gift. And that’s where the fun begins.

Taking inspiration from the legendary Star Wars Holiday Special, James Gunn brings fans a great bit of festive cheer with this very special presentation and it’s completely wild. Dave Bautista’s Drax and Pom Klementoff’s Mantis are the perfect odd couple as they take a road trip to Hollywood and get a crash course on the festive season. And hilarity ensues. With Bautista’s pitch-perfect sense of dry comedy and Klementieff’s over-the-top enthusiasm, things get crazy quickly and we see the two of them hanging out on The Hollywood Walk of Fame, hitting up a nightclub and tracking down a very special present in the form of the legendary Kevin Bacon! It all hums together perfectly, with Gunn’s unique sense of tone and quirks and you’ll be in a fit of happiness with this feature.

Gunn is in his element with The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special, and his sense of creativity is on fire with this production. His writing and knowledge of these characters are just incredible and along with the hi-jinks, we also get some great new worldbuilding elements. These include a newly formed Guardians of the Galaxy who are now in control of the celestial world of Knowhere, and the introduction of Cosmo the Spacedog, a frequent background character in all the Guardians films who is now brought to life by Maria Bakalova, and whose psychic powers are a little bit bewildering for Rocket (Bradley Cooper). Groot (Vin Diesel) has now graduated from teenager to young adult and he’s getting bulky fast so watch out there.

But while hi-jinks and science-fiction lore are fun, it’s the presence of the legendary Kevin Bacon, Peter Quill’s childhood hero of the 1980s where The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special finds its heart. Cast as a fictionalised version of himself, Bacon is kidnapped by Drax and Mantis as a ‘gift’ for Quill and after a brief misunderstanding, he’s able to show Quill and the rest of the Guardians what the true meaning of Christmas is really all about. In a wide-eyed musical number, Bacon lets his voice be heard and you’ll certainly feel the love and have that stirring of that Christmas feeling by the end of this presentation.

The Guardians of the Galaxy Holiday Special is an exceptional watch and it’ll give you all the warm fuzzies and make you very happy for Christmas. Got get the family together, put on that sweater and have fun with this very sweet film.

Image: Walt Disney Pictures

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The fan-favourite director has packed the trailer with some fantastic unseen footage, which places greater emphasis on Nebula and Yondu, while teasing the appearance of a strange new alien race led by the gilded Ayesha, who has intentions of purifying the cosmos.

But the coolest part of the trailer arrives in the form of Kurt Russell’s Ego the Living Planet, a literal cosmic entity who has assumed a humanised form, and reveals himself to be Peter Quill’s father.

Starring Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, and Dave Bautista, plus featuring the voices of Vin Diesel and Bradley Cooper, this sequel to 2014’s Guardians of the Galaxy is likely to be Marvel’s biggest release this year.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 arrives in cinemas on April 27 in New Zealand and Australia, and on May 5 in the US and UK.

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Here’s the synopsis:

Following their initial defeat of Ronan and their encounter with an Infinity Stone, the Guardians are struggling to keep their new found family together, while half-human/half-alien adventurer Peter Quill (Chris Pratt) searches for his real father.

If there is one reason why we love this new trailer, it can be summed up in two words: BABY GROOT!

This adorable little space tree steals every single moment in the trailer, mostly in the way he just wants to press the big red death button. Baby Groot’s new appearance and personality also appears to have redefined his relationship with Rocket, with the latter now more of a parental figure than a friend. But don’t let Baby Groot fool you — he can still deal to any enemy no matter their size…as an unlucky Ravager appears to find out.

This trailer is a rock n’roll extravaganza from beginning to end, and is set to the thumping tune of Sweet’s ‘Fox On The Run’, and I’ve got a feeling that this track will also appear on the elusive Awesome Mix Vol.2.

And while the teaser mostly revolves around the Guardians fighting a giant space alien, we also get to see more of the Ravagers, and are introduced to Pom Klementieff’s Mantis, along with her unique powers. But naturally when she levels them at Peter Quill (Chris Pratt), his playboy feelings get the better of him.

Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.2 will be released on May 5, 2017.

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